In Acts 15, the church is dealing with an argument. Some (Jewish) men began teaching the believers that even though they believed in Jesus, they couldn’t be saved unless they followed the law of Moses and were circumcised. Dr. D.A.Carson writes in “For the Love of God, Volume 1:”
It finally develops into the question of how your Bible is put together. The Judaizers elevated the law of Moses above Jesus. Jesus could be accepted as the Messiah, only if the result was a group of people even more devoutly committed to obeying the Mosaic Covenant- food laws, circumcision, temple cultus and all. By contrast, the leaders point in another direction. The law was never well obeyed by the Jews (15:10); why impose it on the Gentiles? More importantly, the revelation reflected in the old covenant points to Jesus. He is its GOAL, not its servant. Peter reminds the assembled crowd that in the Cornelius episode GOD poured out His Spirit on the Gentiles without their being circumcised (15:7-8). At issue, finally, is the freedom of God’s grace. (15:11)
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 